Only those of us who have lived on Long Island (N.Y.) will truly appreciate this...

Subject: You Know You're a Long Island New Waver [No Waver] When... you can relate to any of the following:

1. You've always loved The Cure and you own several of their "records." [I owned one but also had some rare recordings also. Robert Smith had some great lyrics, some real heartbreaking stuff and the lead guitar was searing at times.]

2. You actually know someone who went to "Sachem". [You’ll have to exclude me, I have no IDEA what this person is talking about.]

3. Seeing a concert at Jones Beach Marine Theater - the best place in the world to see a show. [Yes, to be on the water in an amphitheater that only held 5,000 plus was a terrific venue during the summer. I saw Neil Young play with Soundgarden as the warm up band. The skies literally broke loose but my ex-wife and I were prepared for rain. We were one of a few rockin’ in the rain with Soundgarden. A week later, the local free music paper had an article that Soundgarden that evening had played the best concert of their entire lives; they played their guts out in torrential rain to an audience of 20 people. (Bonus points if you're old enough [I’m old enough but do not remember this] to have seen Guy Lombardo pilot his speedboat past the seats at full throttle!) [The Jones Beach Marine Theater originally was meant for plays such as Shakespeare and held concerts for the older generation in its heyday. It wasn’t until it was well run down and attendance was practically nill that they turned to the gen x’ers and began booking “our” performers. Concerts were held from June till late September because this is an outdoor theater.]

4. Is it just me, or is every girl from Rockville Centre a bitch? ....hey, watch it!! [I cannot confirm this as I ALWAYS stayed out of Rockville Centre as it was the seat for the Nassau County Catholic Church and there was NEVER anything to attract me to Rockville Centre.]

5. You went to the Malibu before it closed. [I went to Malibu when it opened and went there for many, many years. At first I felt lost in the place because Malibu was immense. The dance floor was large enough to use as a roller skating rink, had two DJ rooms, and three bars. Malibu could easily and comfortably accommodate 1000 patrons on a Saturday Night. Who can forget Peaches and Hahn as our hostesses? It was not until years later that I became more comfortable with myself as a person that I could frequent such large places and feel comfortable.]

6. Heartbeat, Paris, and the OBI!! [Heartbeat was a night club I remember in name only. Paris is shown here and I really didn’t care for the atmosphere. I would go there sometimes looking for something different: people, music, and atmosphere. Paris leaned towards French and German New Wave which attracted a completely different sort of click. Also, Paris was located on the east side of Huntington on Jericho turnpike so for me this was a bit of a hike and not parkway driving like Malibu. Paris was in Suffolk County. Even though we were all Long Island Douche Bags (FLID’s) as my friend from Queens referred to us, I was more of a “city boy,” Mahattanese than I liked to think. OBI (The Oak Beach Inn was a hoppin’ place back in the seventies. In the eighties, for some reason it lost its appeal. Maybe Malibu and the opposite end of the Island stole its thunder. These were both Beach Night Clubs. In other words, you could sneak out of the club and fuck on the beach. Malibu was in Long Beach at the West End of Jones Beach and OBI was at the West End of Robert Moses just before Fire Island. They were about a thirty mile drive along Ocean Parkway from each other. The car rides to these places were ALWAYS well worth it. The BIG problem was the cops would sit outside the bar and pull people over for driving under the influence after all, if you were all the way out there, where else could you be coming from other than OBI. For some reason this problem did not exist at Malibu. This may have been a difference in Long Beach, Nassau County cops having better things to do and Oak Beach, Suffolk County needing to generate county revenue.]

7. If you're not from Long Island or one of the five boroughs, you're not really from "NEW YAWK!" [No, I beg to differ, “If you're not from Long Island or one of the five boroughs, you are DEFINITELY NOT from "NEW YAWK!" Enough said.]

8. You don't go to Manhattan... you go to "The City." [Absolutely, and you do not refer to Long Island as “Long Island,” you refer to “this” piece of real estate as The Island implying there IS no other island or city, period.]

9. When someone asks you, "where are you from?", you don't say N.Y... you say "from Lawn Guylan" like it was already the 51st state. [Only the Jewish Yenta’s pronounce Long Island as “Lawn Guyland.” They are usually married to a doctor and spend their time running from one shopping mall to the next from the "South Showa" (South Shore) to the "North Showa" (North Shore).]

10. You never, EVER, want to "change at Jamaica." [Fuck no!!!! Even people living in Brooklyn don’t want to “change Long Island Railroad (LIRR) trains at Jamaica station. Jamaica Station happens to be one of the most dangerous places in Brooklyn and still is.]

11. You never realize you have an accent until you leave (or until you go back for a visit and everyone sounds funny!) [True, but I think that is true of all Americans. Regional accents are quickly disappearing but still do exist in some places. We notice accents mainly on specific words such as “cawfee” (coffee).

13. You know that The Bank was a cool club in the city. [Yes, I remember The Bank. Now that a NY’er has mentioned it. I Had this club confused in my mind as being in Philadelphia.]

13. The Belt Parkway SUCKS! [Always. ALWAYS. ALWAYS! There is never a time of day that the Belt Parkway doesn’t have bumper to bumper traffic. I don’t care how early or how late. On the other hand, you KNOW you are a native New Yorker when you can drive in this traffic at 65 to 75 mph, bumper to bumper, car door to car door and not have others cursing you for not driving fast enough. A non-native “white knuckles on the steering wheel, drives MUCH slower and sweats bullets that the lanes are too narrow and the cars are driving bumper to bumper at 65 to 75 mph. You also become accustomed to those who have a knack for being able to weave through small holes in traffic at 85 mph. If you can do this, you KNOW you’re an excellent driver. The New York Taxi Cab companies have an opening for you.]

14. You've been to Spies. [The Night Club which was once on Route 110 on the boarder of Melville and Amityville. This was another club I went to for a change of atmosphere and never felt comfortable in. The atmosphere revolved around Urban Contempt. Raw plumbing showing, chain link fencing for dividers, walls graffitied, Spies was pretty trashy, a place where you would feel comfortable spitting on the floor like it was nothing. Hey, I was poor, and as S. Miller said in ENGL 324, “I KNOW I am poor, I don’t want to dress as though I am poor.” I agree and that was what post-punk or new wave was all about. Being different, remembering your poor urban roots but being something other than poor. Being somewhat up-scale.]

15. You replace the letter "r" from the end of words that end with "r" with an "ah"...i.e., beah, mothah, fathah, sistah, brotha. [There were a few people I knew who spoke this way but not that many.]

16. You curse... A LOT! [I completely disagree. My father ALWAYS cursed. Constantly. My mother tried to train me differently. In the shop I was no better. When I went to college I looked at myself differently and my father differently. I broke myself of the habitual cursing. I can find many, many other words to articulate my meaning without lowering myself to the common denominator.]

17. Buttons covered your jean jacket. [“Buttons covered your jean jacket?” I’m lost. I know what a jean jacket is and of course it had to be Levi but we gave those up when we became post-punk. We associated jean jackets with Rockers not Post-Punk.]

18. You listen to bands like Any Trouble, Sparks and ABC. [I don’t know about Any Trouble or Sparks. I do remember ABC and enjoyed listening to them in the clubs and on radio such as Shoot That Poison Arrow but this music was real commercial in sound so I NEVER bought any.]

19. Going to the diner at 2:00 a.m. after clubbing was a must. [Yes, and LI (Long Island) had great diners, mainly Greek Diners on Old Country Road in Westbury and Hempstead Turnpike in East Meadow. How I dearly miss my Greek Diners. :-(

20. You've "cruised" on Hempstead Turnpike, Jericho Turnpike, or Northern Blvd. in a Mustang GT or a convertible with the top DOWN. [Yes I have gone cruzin for hours on end and I also built a show car that took me ten ghastly years to complete.]

21. You know the band "Skinny Puppy" [Yes, yes I do. They were the beginnings of Industrial Music along with Controlled Bleeding who one of the founders was a high school teacher by day. Also Front 242 pronounced “Front Two Four Two, and who can forget Cooler Than Jesus. God was this stuff awful.]

22. You've walked through the tunnels at Smith's Point or the underpass at Jones Beach. [Yes I have. Many beach tunnels.]

23. You've gotten drunk at the Boardy Barn. [YES! That IS an ACHIEVEMENT!!!! It is almost impossible to get in there at ANY time of day. One usually has to stand in the hot sun during the summer waiting for someone to pass out from drinking in order to get in there. My ex-wife waited four hours to get it. I have no idea what the appeal is though.]

24. You know the difference between WLIR and WDRE, even though they played the same music. [Yes, yes I do not only know the difference but I remember the day or evening WLIR played its last note on the airwaves. Within a few minutes, this new radio station comes on with one of the other stations DJ’s announces the new call letters but it was not completely business as usual. WDRE did play more different music than good ole WLIR. This was like WLIR on steroids.]

25. You know the difference between New Wave music and Complaint Rock! [Not really. Are you referring to Depression Rock, like Morrissey???? Many call him and others similar to his lyrics style Depression Rock or Depressive Rock because these musicians would sing about feelings and emotions most of us would rather hide and bury than expose them to the light of day.

26. No matter how old we get the music is still damn good!!! [I have noticed that. The music from this time period was quite experimental and nothing have been done like it again.]

27. You remember what a 'Newsblimp' was. [Yes I remember old El Blimpo and the sound it used to make when it was landing.]

28. You Knew The DMM"s "Bitchin Camaro" [Yes, I did. “My parents gave it to me. They drove it up here all the way from the Bahamas.” “You can’t drive from the Bahamas…” “Errr, no, but anyway…” … One Two Three Four! Bitchin Camaro Bitchin Camaro… enough said.]

29. You Knew of the Bands 'Zebra' and 'The Good Rats' (Nu wave, not...) [This person is going way back. Zebra does not ring any bells but I do remember the Good Rats but they were a lousy band. This person forgot to mention Barnaby Bye and also their favorite watering hole (bar) the Tumblin’ Inn who sold beers from around the world. The Tumblin’ Inn was an old house converted into a bar next to the Roberts Chevrolet dealership in Hicksville, NY on Broadway. The big draw was to drink each and every beer they sold so you would get your name on a list in the bar in gold. I never bothered.]

30. You remember the Calderone Theater. [Yes I do, and I actually saw not only rock concerts there but I also saw a movie in it when I was fifteen or sixteen with my first date before they stopped showing movies. Her name was Alissa and she was a beautifully built girl. My problem was that she was on the “fast track.” Later I found out how fast. When we dated her sister was eighteen and was already having a baby. Alissa was competing with her sister, (little did I know and wanted to find out what it was all about… with me… The moment she graduated high school she was married and pregnant. I have no idea how life turned out from there. I never saw her again.]

Spize
I thought I was the only one feeling depressed about the demise of WLIR. During the early - mid eighties, WLIR was more than just a station. It was a lifestyle. A state of mind! (Sorry, am I getting too carried away???) [No not at all. WLIR and WDRE were “states of mind.” Many times the DJ’s would suggest putting on our headphones to get into some headphone reality. This meant the track they were going to play was going to play some real tricks in sound going across the left and right channel making the sound reverberate inside your mind. This was fabulous stuff. Genesis was excellent for this as was Moody Blues but in the eighties there were many new bands expanding beyond with experiments in minor cords and not major cords.]

Then the other night I saw the VH1 specials about the reunions of Berlin and Romeo Void [I first heard Romeo Void in Camouflage] and I was like damn, I miss those days and those nights at The Malibu night club! [I miss them too!] My sister and friend used to go there on Saturdays [Saturday was the best!] and Tuesday's [I could live without. Tuesdays, there were too few people and Malibu… on Tuesday’s Malibu was actually called The Loop after “The Loop Parkway” we had to use to get there. felt empty/lonesome/desolate.] in the summer when it was also known as "The Loop." [Right!] There was this one guy who'd we always see there. I remember him always wearing a white ruffled shirt. He was the most amazing dancer. [Too bad it wasn’t me. Lol.] We'd drool over watching this guy dance! lol!

They used to have a free buffet if you got there early. [Yes and the food was awful.] I even won a birthday party once [once? Once? Only once? We won them on a regular basis. After about a month of being there I never EVER paid the admission fee of ten dollars again.] , and Larry the Duck [I remember Larry] came over to the bar to give me a free Simple Minds album. I also remember meeting that Australian group Ice House and got their autographs. That had a song out called No Promises. [I remember the song.]

Those were some really fun times! Well, thanks for allowing me to share!

31. You saw Vixen cover songs like Sleepwalk and I Will Follow at Cheers in Deer Park in the summer of '81. [This sounds like a Suffolk County person. I had no need to venture that far out for entertainment.]

32. You drank beers in the car parked down the street with the realtor on the corner waiting for the action at Spit to pick up. [I know where you are sitting. This was common at many of the night clubs. You guys would buy your six packs for a 1/3 of what it would cost in the bar, pour your beer in a plastic cup so you weren’t drinking in public, remove the keys from the ignition so you couldn’t be accused of driving under the influence and get as bombed as possible BEFORE going in to save some money on five dollar beers.]

33. You were glued to Hofstra radio before WLIR switched formats. [No, that’s not true. I was GLUED to Hofstra University radio in 1981 with the Post Punk Progressive Pop Party (5P) 88.7 FM which played six nights a week from 10p to 2a Monday through Saturday because these DJ’s played the underground NY music scene… the non-corporate new music which after a while began to trickle down to WLIR and WDRE after a great deal of air play at 88.7 Hofstra radio. I quite often caught WDRE playing a track right after it was played at Hofstra demonstrating that the DJ’s were listening to Hofstra while on the air. As Killing Joke used to say, “Follow the Leader, Couldn’t believe her…” Shame on all of you. WLIR and WDRE were as corporate as the DJ’s playing music at the other end of the dial (95.something on up.) I also listened to NYU’s college radio to be introduced to other alternative music to alternative to be played by corporate non-conformist radio… WLIR/WDRE.]

34. You went to Valley Stream to buy your NW clothes (what was the name of that store again?) [Never. I went to Valley Stream to locate my vinyl. The latest in non-corporate music.]

35. You've seen the Ramones more than a dozen times. [No I haven’t. I NEVER saw the Ramones and NEVER wanted to.]

God... those were the days.

37. You bought your clothes at Chess King in le Petit Mall. [Yes I did, but long before there WAS a le Petit Mall in Roosevelt Field. This REALLY demonstrated that we had slipped into what they (corporate wanted us to be) good little consumers. The REAL non-conformists were buying their club clothes in thrift stores in NYC.]

38. Got a haircut at The Cave. [Why? Because the place looked like a cave? I never understood the appeal to having one’s hair cut there nor did I understand what I was getting by paying more.]

39. Went to WLIR's free Party in the Park concerts in Hempstead. [I missed that!]

40. Know the difference between Rumbottoms and Rumrunners. [Yes, Rumbottoms the Rock Club.]

41. Been to a "Non-conformal Ball." [Can’t say that I have. I did go to a toga party though and we all had fun there.]

42. Loved Spit but hated Uncle Sams. [Uncle Sams was disco. Period. Times changed.]

Hey...I'm new to this site... I really want to know where to go on Long Island for '80's new wave & synth pop besides Subculture....now that everything has closed. I was a Paris NY, Malibu, 007, and Luxe go-er and probably know many of you fellow Long Islanders, if only by face. Any help for a girl in her thirties that misses old times, the same faces, and good music? I welcome your response! Thanks! [Shit! I’m practically fifty and STILL want to break dance to the oldies. Eighties oldies that is. What the HELL do I do?]

Us aging wavers need something like that. I remember DJ'd roller rinks having those kind of hours back in the late 70's early 80's. Why Not? [Yes they did and I loved skating at those crazy hours of 12 midnight to two or three in the morning. It was as good as dancing.]

You know who Donna Donna, Malibu Sue, and Larry the Duck are. [Yes I do, plus the old early 70’s DJ’s.]

You know the difference between Screamer of the week and Shriek of the week. [Eh, six of one, half a dozen of the other. What’s in a name…]

You saw the Ramones at the short lived L'Mores far east in the Mayfair shopping center. [No NEVER. Didn’t care to either.]

You cruised 231 looking for girls. [Rt. 231, this is a native Suffolk person speaking. Again, I had no need to be that far out on The Island.]

You went to Heaven in Northport. [I wouldn’t bother. The best Night Clubs were in MY neck of the woods. Nassau County and Manhattan.]

You know where Summers and Neptune’s are. [Which Neptune’s? There were two. One in the mid seventies on Hempstead Turnpike in Levittown, which also I think was previously called Hammerheads. Or do you mean the one in Suffolk County that was opened years later after the one in Nassau County folded? Summers? I have no clue.]

You've seen the Touch. [I never did but my ex-wife was there every friggin’ Sunday at the Dublin Pub. I think it was the Smiths/Morrissey covers they did or was it Depeshe Mode, I can’t remember.]

Spanky's yes Shadows NO! [I don’t remember either one.]

You knew EXACTLY where 1600 Stewart Ave was and what awaited you at the top floor! (Bumper Stickers, Passes, Cd's, LP's Etc..) [All too well my friend, all too well.]

This is my first post....I love this topic and this board is awesome...

I could not remember for the life of me the name of the club in Commack where I saw the Ramones back in the summer of 88. Thank you very much for that. [No wonder I had no idea what you were talking about. Commack was 30 miles away. I had no need to go out that far. I’d go West before East anyway.]

Anyone remember Sundance in Bayshore, next to Southside Hospital? [No.] I saw a lot of hardcore shows there, Circle Jerks [I remember the name of the band only], Token Entry, Agnostic Front [I remember the name of the band only], Murphy's Law (those guys were f'n cool) [yes, these are the hardcore punk bands] even the Ramones and the Red Hot Chili Peppers back in 89 when the Mothers Milk album was coming out and John Frusciante and Chad Smith just joined the band. Even saw RHCP back at Nassau Community College in May 88, right before Hillel Slovak died and Fishbone [sucked. I saw them at Spit and after 15 minutes I was so discussed with what was going on and how they were manipulating the crowd I left for Malibu.] opened up for them.

The Touch at Dublin Pub, where else would you see them at anyway? LOL. [I don’t think you COULD see them anywhere else could you?]

End of an Era: WLIR 92.7 "Long Island Radio" says goodbye
February 1, 2004
by Michael Walls

Say the names Malibu Sue, Donna Donna or Larry the Duck – and use them in the same phrase as, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Echo and the Bunnymen, or Souixsie and the Banshees – and any hip person living on Long Island between 1980 and 1995 would know what you’re talking about.

For those not fortunate enough to spend their defining years in the shopping malls, nightclubs and on the beaches of the country’s most populous island – I’m talking about 92.7 FM, WLIR. “Long Island Radio” – or “Low Income Radio” as many DJs joked back in the early days.

WLIR (or WDRE as it was called for a brief stint before turning back) was the pinnacle of modern music, new wave, alternative – whatever it was called – and was the launching pad for many of the gigantic artists we still listen to today. Bands like R.E.M., U2, INXS, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Blur. Or for those youngsters not born until the 80s – bands like Nirvana, Stone Temple Pilots, Soundgarden, even Dave Matthews – all owe a debt of gratitude to LIR for embracing the new styles and sounds of music over the past 20 years.

But 2004 marks the end of an era, maybe even the end of radio itself.

As of January 9, 2004, WLIR, owned by Jarad Broadcasting was sold to Univision, the biggest Spanish-language radio company in America. And now, when you tune your dial to 92.7, anywhere in the New York City, New Jersey, or Connecticut areas, you get to listen to the finest “Latino Mix” this side of Tijuana.

What a shame.

Back in the 80s, WLIR was doing things usually reserved for college radio. Playing stuff that no one else played. They took risks, broke rules, experimented, and most of all – had fun. But they were doing it on a commercial stage with a wide frequency and a growing audience. And it paid off. I don’t have exact numbers, but I’m fairly certain for several years WLIR/WDRE was leading the ratings in listeners. You couldn’t go anywhere in the Tri-state areas without hearing LIR. The mall, the beach, the gas station, all played LIR. Every bar and every club on Long Island was vying for “WLIR nights” or WLIR live broadcasts.

I remember the “WLIR Ladies Nights” at J. Sprats in Westbury on Thursday nights, with their free buffet and $2 Rolling Rocks. Or the “WLIR Malibu Dance Parties” [Party Gone Out of Bounds] at the Malibu night club on Malibu beach – where you and ten friends could get in for free if it was your birthday (plus a free bottle of champagne).

Shrieks and Screamers-of-the-Week would be the subjects of conversation, as LIR would select the best new song each week. Many now famous artists and many one-hit wonders were born as Shrieks-of-the-Week on LIR. Songs like “Melt With You” by Modern English, “Come on Eileen” from Dexy’s Midnight Runners, and “She Blinded Me With Science” from Thomas Dolby.

Throughout the late 80s and into the mid-90s, WLIR continued to play music that no other station carried. Bands like The Cure, New Order, Pet Shop Boys, Roxy Music, The Pixies, Love & Rockets – you could only hear in the night clubs or on LIR. Then around 1992, the grunge scene started to heat up – with bands like Nirvana and Soundgarden. WLIR saw the wave of change first and grabbed the music. Of course, grunge became bigger than LIR could contain, and other stations ditched their Van Halen and George Thorogood formats and jumped on board.

And that was the beginning of the end, as WLIR slowly began to lose its edge (and its listeners, as per the folks at Arbitron) over the next several years. But I suppose it was inevitable, as nothing good lasts forever. They adjusted their format a few times, trying to catch whatever it was they lost, but the truth is, the industry simply caught up with them. The alternative music movement had gone mainstream – progressive radio was dead.

So, the question is – where are we going to hear “Melt With You” from Modern English? Certainly no one actually owns that album. We depended on WLIR to play that song at least once a week. While we’re at it, what about The Smiths? Depeche Mode? The Soup Dragons? Flock of Seagulls? Okay, I could probably go the rest of my life without the Gulls, but there are so many of those other bands that I might have on cassette tape somewhere, but sound so much better in an 80s mixed environment on the radio.

WLIR played its last song at noon on January 9, 2004. It was “Forever Young” by Alphaville. Which, in my opinion, was kind of a sappy way to go out. I’m sure it crossed the minds of at least a few DJs that the last song played on WLIR, before handing over the reins to Univision’s Spanish radio team, should have been Wall of Voodoo’s “Mexican Radio.”

WLIR/WDRE's DJ Malibu Sue with Morrissey

WLIR/WDRE's DJ's Larry the Duck and Donna Donna with John Lydon of PiL formerly "Johnny Rotten" of The Sex Pistols

Malibu Night Club

Malibu Night Club in Newsday (Long Island's main daily newspaper)

WLIR.FM Screamer of the Week/WDRE.FM Shriek of the Week

P. C. Paul's White Papers